Disney to buy Comcast's stake in Hulu

In a long-anticipated move, the Walt Disney Company announced Wednesday it will buy the remaining stake in Hulu from Comcast's NBC Universal. Disney will acquire the remaining 33% stake in the streaming platform and expects to pay NBC Universal around $8.61 billion by Dec. 1, the guaranteed minimum of $27.5 billion that the companies first agreed to in 2019.

Under the agreement, Hulu's value will be reassessed as of Sept. 30, and if the value is determined to be greater than the $27.5 billion floor value, Disney will pay NBC Universal its percentage of difference.

With Hulu barely seeing a shift in subscribers last quarter, Disney announced a price hike across all of its streaming services and hinted at a password-sharing crackdown. In October, Hulu's ad-free service went from $14.99 / month to $17.99 / month, while Hulu with Live TV will jump from $68.99 / month to $75.99 / month.

The decision comes as Disney makes dramatic shifts in its media business, with chief executive Bob Iger openly floating the possibility it could sell off its ABC division and is on the hunt for a "strategic partner" for ESPN as it aims to quickly transition from the linear television business to streaming.

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